Exclusive: HSBC and NatWest staffers seconded to shadow business secretary Jonathan Reynolds’s team
Labour has been criticised for giving global banks access to parliament after taking an HSBC staffer into its shadow business team, despite the financial giant coming under fire over its links with China.
One senior policy manager from HSBC has been seconded to the team of Jonathan Reynolds, the shadow business secretary, and has been given a parliamentary pass since February.
Continue reading...Environmentalists from the Philippines urge investors to avoid LNG projects which they say threaten the Verde Island Passage
Campaigners from the Philippines have urged British banks not to fund the expansion of fossil fuel use in their country. It follows a huge oil spill that threatened a globally important marine biodiversity hotspot.
Filipino environmentalists have travelled to the UK to meet representatives from Barclays, Standard Chartered and HSBC as part of efforts to stop the expansion of liquefied natural gas (LNG) power plants and terminals in and around the Verde Island Passage, a global marine biodiversity hotspot known for its whale sharks, corals, turtles and rich fisheries, which was badly affected by the oil spill this year.
Continue reading...This blog is now closed.
Albanese added he is concerned about Assange’s mental health.
There was a court decision here in the United Kingdom that was then overturned on appeal that went to Mr Assange’s health, as well, and I am concerned for him.
It’s frustrating. I share the frustration. I can’t do more than make very clear what my position is.
… I think that the Assange case needs to be looked at in terms of what occurred, what the allegations are, and whether the time effectively that has been served already is in excess of what would be reasonable if it were proved that this had occurred.
Continue reading...Banks seek to calm markets as investors fear repeat of First Republic and SVB failures
[NEW]Trading in shares of the California-lender PacWest have been suspended after plummeting 42% amid wider fears about the health of the US’s regional bank sector.
PacWest had sought to calm markets on Wednesday and said it was in talks with several potential investors after its shares plummeted by as much as 60%. But the sell-off continued on Thursday and affected other regional banks.
Continue reading...Lyrics of Stop changed to ‘stop right now, no more oil and gas’ because of bank’s fossil fuel funding
Barclays’ annual general meeting has been disrupted by climate activists condemning the bank’s role as one of Europe’s largest funders of fossil fuels – including a choir singing a Spice Girls hit with reworked lyrics.
Dozens of activists from groups including Fossil Free London and Extinction Rebellion UK began their action less than five minutes into the meeting where its chair, Nigel Higgins, was addressing shareholders at the QEII Centre in Westminster, central London.
Continue reading...Failure of four banks in six weeks is purely a sign of poor risk management, says chief executive
HSBC’s chief executive has denied the possibility of a fresh banking crisis, saying the failure of four banks in six weeks was a merely a sign of poor risk management, as the lender tripled its own first quarter profits to $13bn (£10bn) after its rescue of Silicon Valley Bank UK.
Noel Quinn’s comments came a day after JP Morgan stepped in to buy most of the collapsed lender First Republic in a $10.6bn takeover, as part of regulators’ efforts to draw a line under lingering turmoil across the banking sector.
Continue reading...Follow the latest news live
Chalmers promises ‘substantial cost-of-living relief’ for most vulnerable
Asked if the age of 55 is the distinction Jim Chalmers thinks should be made on jobseeker, the treasurer says:
The reason I’m using 55 is because the reports that we received women’s economic equality taskforce and the economic inclusion advisory committee, which has been, in welcome ways, discussed quite a lot on your program, say that women over 55 are the most vulnerable group amongst unemployed Australians.
We’ve indicated before that we want to do something to help them in particular, but again, without pre-empting what’s in the budget in a week’s time, there will be a number of elements to our cost-of-living relief. Not all of them will be determined by age. For example, our energy bill relief plan, which will be in the budget in a week’s time, is for people on pensions and payments right across the board, not limited by age.
Will you increase jobseeker for people aged over 55?
There will be responsible cost-of-living relief in the budget, and it will focus on the most vulnerable people. There will be a number of elements to it. It won’t all be limited to one cohort or another. But it will all be made clear in the budget.
First of all, the jobseeker payment already makes a distinction between workers closer to the age pension, older workers, it already pays a different rate at the moment for people over 60. And that’s in recognition that it is harder to find a new job at that end of your working life. That’s the first point.
The second point is related. All of the expert advice a lot of the analysis I’ve heard it on your show, and it’s been right, says that the group that’s most likely to be long-term unemployed – people over 55 – that that group is dominated by women that the most vulnerable part of the unemployed population in Australia is at the moment women over 55. And so that’s another issue that people need to factor in.
Continue reading...US banking titan to buy ‘all deposits and substantially all assets’ in deal brokered by regulators to contain banking failures
JP Morgan is to acquire most of the failed California bank First Republic, in a takeover brokered by regulators as the US races to contain a series of banking failures that has echoes of the 2008 global financial crisis.
After weekend talks to prevent a further escalation of the US banking crisis, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) confirmed that First Republic had collapsed and would be taken over by JP Morgan. The regulator is providing $50bn (£39.9bn) of financing as part of the deal.
Continue reading...Deadline of Sunday set for companies such as JPMorgan Chase to table offer for California bank whose shares have plummeted
US regulators are racing to secure the sale of California bank First Republic, which is on course to become the third American lender to fail this year, a sequence of collapses that has drawn uncomfortable parallels with the 2008 global financial crisis.
Half a dozen US banks are in the running to take over stricken First Republic, according to reports over the weekend, with leading bidders including JPMorgan Chase, Citizens Financial and PNC Financial Services.
Continue reading...A new lawsuit against its former boss does not involve the bank, but awkward questions may be asked at this week’s AGM
Barclays could be forgiven for thinking it was out of the woods after parting ways with its chief executive, Jes Staley, in 2021, amid regulators’ concerns over his relationship with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
At the time, the board – which had already backed the boss over a separate whistleblower scandal in 2018 – seemed assured by Staley’s account of events. The bank even expressed disappointment over his departure as he prepared to challenge a (yet-to-be-released) UK investigation into the way he had characterised his ties to the disgraced financier.
Continue reading...The bank came into focus after two regional banks collapsed in April, shaking confidence in smaller institutions
First Republic Bank’s deposits fell by over $100 bn in the first quarter and it said it was exploring options including restructuring its balance sheet, overshadowing market-beating profit and sending its shares down 21% after the bell on Monday.
The results mark the most important quarter for the troubled bank as it prepares to increase insured deposits, cut borrowings from the Federal Reserve Bank and loan balances, it said, while aiming to layoff nearly 20-25% in the second quarter.
Continue reading...Results reported for what is likely to be the last time as lender’s takeover by Swiss rival nears completion
Credit Suisse said customers pulled more than 61bn Swiss francs (£55bn) worth of assets from the bank at the start of the year, laying bare the scale of the panic that contributed to its failure and emergency takeover by its rival UBS last month.
The Swiss lender said the “significant withdrawals” were partly to blame for its poor financial performance in the first quarter, with its adjusted pre-tax loss ballooning to 1.3bn Swiss francs for the first three months of the year. That compares with a profit of 300m Swiss francs during the same period in 2022.
Continue reading...Bank’s links to sex offender financier deeper than previously known, as it faces lawsuit brought by US Virgin Islands
Senior executives with the global banking giant JP Morgan maintained contact with disgraced financier and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein for years after dropping him as a client in 2013, six years after he was charged with solicitation of a minor, according to a new report.
The allegation, reported in the Wall Street Journal on Friday, comes as JP Morgan, the world’s largest bank by assets, is being sued by an unidentified Epstein accuser and the US Virgin Islands – where Epstein owned a private island – for benefiting from human trafficking by ignoring internal red flags about his behavior.
Continue reading...Finance sector workers are deserting the UK for the Italian city, lured by the weather, the way of life and tax breaks
It wasn’t so long ago that Milan was cast aside as a grey, uninspiring industrial city, with the only sprinkle of colour coming from its fashion sector. But the northern Italian powerhouse now has a newfound energy and confidence – and it’s partly driven by Brexit.
As the consequences of the UK’s withdrawal from the EU have kicked in, a significant number of bankers, fund managers and other financial services workers have shifted from London to Milan – an option that would never have been considered a decade ago.
Continue reading...As part of inquiry into pricing practices, consumer regulator will assess the criteria banks use when making rate decisions
The competition regulator will test whether banks and other lenders use a person’s profession, or other demographic information, to determine what savings rate they receive, amid growing concerns over pricing practices.
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has opened its inquiry into retail deposits for submissions, and will assess the criteria banks use when making rate decisions.
Sign up for Guardian Australia’s free morning and afternoon email newsletters for your daily news roundup
Continue reading...Finma accused of acting unlawfully and undermining confidence in Switzerland as a financial centre
A group of Credit Suisse investors who lost bonds worth more than CHF 4.5bn (£4bn) are suing Switzerland’s financial regulator over a decision to wipe out risky bank debt after an emergency merger with UBS last month.
The investors filed their claim at a court in St Gallen, in the north-east of Switzerland, weeks after Swiss authorities orchestrated the takeover of Credit Suisse by its larger rival UBS, to try to stem a crisis of confidence in the global banking sector.
Continue reading...Bank warns spinning off more profitable Asia business would be complex and would lower dividends
HSBC’s board has urged shareholders to vote against a proposed break-up of its business at its annual meeting, arguing that a split would result in a “material loss” and lower dividends.
In response to calls for the split from its largest shareholder, the Chinese insurer Ping An, HSBC warned on Wednesday that spinning off its more profitable Asian business from the rest of the bank would also require approval from regulators in approximately 25 jurisdictions, and force it to make changes to customer services.
Continue reading...Supermarket giant says it is disappointed after being informed that historical customer credit card details have been stolen by hackers
Coles Financial Services has expressed its disappointment after being alerted that historical customer credit card details were stolen in the Latitude data breach.
Coles credit card holders’ personal details are the latest to be identified in around 14 million customer records compromised in the hack.
Sign up for Guardian Australia’s free morning and afternoon email newsletters for your daily news roundup
Continue reading...Prosecutors say the woman was later stopped in a car with cash scattered on its floor and was ‘very stern’ with police
A 78-year-old woman with two past bank robbery convictions faces new charges after allegedly carrying out a heist in Missouri during which she handed a teller a note that said “I didn’t mean to scare you”.
Bonnie Gooch has been jailed on a $25,000 bond after she was charged with one count of stealing or attempting to steal from a financial institution in the holdup last Wednesday in Pleasant Hill, the Kansas City Star reported.
Continue reading...More than $95m has been lost to scams so far this year, while the big four are expected to make more than $33bn
With the big four banks tipped to make record profits this financial year, consumer rights advocates are calling for financial institutions to invest more in protecting customers against scams.
Australians have lost more than $96m to scams so far this year, with the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission estimating that is just the tip of the iceberg as most go unreported.
Sign up for Guardian Australia’s free morning and afternoon email newsletters for your daily news roundup
Continue reading...